In a notable turn of events, Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina met with India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on Monday evening after arriving at the Hindon Air Force base in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, located roughly 30 km from Delhi. This meeting took place after a chaotic day in Bangladesh, where Hasina, who has served as Prime Minister five times, was forced to resign amid violent protests that left over 300 people dead.
Student activists from various universities in Bangladesh are agitating, raising slogans against the quota system, or slots reserved for government jobs in Bangladesh.
The structure of quotas reserves more than half of well paid-civil service posts, which includes numerous government jobs, for specific groups, including those whose parents fought in the 1971 war of Independence for Bangladesh from Pakistan. The war veterans are known as ‘Mukti Joddhas’.
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Brutal clashes are taking place in various regions of Bangladesh between people who are loyal to Bangladesh’s ruling party and agitators or students, who are against the job quotas. This violent clashes have wounded at least 100 people till now, according to police reports. The police have also fired tear gas shells and charged batons during the clashes.
A brief history of similar protests
Earlier, in 2018 several protests were held to criticise the norms of the quota system, which reserved 30 percent of the slots for the kin of freedom fighters.
The students at that time protested to decrease the percentage from 30 percent to 10 percent. After the massive collective protests, the governing body of the ruling dispensation decided to ban the quota system completely.
Before 2018, the government of Bangladesh had a robust reservation system in place for various categories of its population in public sector jobs. A significant 56 percent of government job openings were reserved, leaving only 44 percent of positions available for open admission.
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The largest share, 30 percent, was allocated to family members of veterans who fought in the 1971 Liberation War. Women and individuals from underdeveloped districts each received a 10 percent reservation. Additionally, 5 percent of the jobs were reserved for members of tribal communities, and 1 percent was set aside for persons with disabilities. This reservation system was designed to provide opportunities for underrepresented and disadvantaged groups within the country.
What happened in 2024
After six years, the government took back their prohibitory orders for exercising the quota system and reimplemented the quota system.
In June 2024, the High Court division of the Supreme Court gave orders to reimplement the quota system without making any change in the norms, following which, students from various universities decided to voice their opinions against this.
Student protestors on Sunday night marched into a dozen universities to voice their opposition against Prime Minister Sheikh Hassina, as she compared the protestors to Razakar fighters, who collaborated with the Pakistani army during the war of Independence.
Hasina’s razakar jibe
In the collective memory of Bangladesh, collaborators during the 1971 Liberation War, known as “razakars,” are often resented more than the Pakistani Army and bureaucracy. Recently, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina used the term “razakar” in a jibe, which sparked a strong reaction from protestors. This was not the first time Hasina has used such language, but this instance led to widespread protests where demonstrators attempted to sarcastically co-opt the term.
Chants of “Who are you? Who am I? Razakar, razakar!” resonated through the protests. Another slogan, “Chaite gelam odhikar, bone galam razakar,” roughly translates to, “We are being called traitors for asking for our rights.” These protests highlight the deep-seated emotions and the contentious nature of historical memories in Bangladesh.
